The Dead of Winter
by Nil1875
Summary: Yes, the title is a very bad pun. Mac and Stella are snowed in at a hotel with a dead body. Gradual revelations occur during the night while New York is covered in snow. Mac/Stella T Complete
1. The Dead of Winter

**_Welcome! _**

**_I'm afraid I don't own anything, and if I did Melina would not be leaving the show and I would still be watching it next season._**

**_I hope you enjoy the story, and please review!_**

* * *

"There's supposed to be a storm tonight," Stella commented lightly as she and Mac entered the abandoned hotel where they'd been called to investigate a dead body.

"Our third body in a week and now it's going to snow? This is turning out to be one hell of a first week of the year.," Mac grumbled.

They made their way to the third floor to room 315. Stella pushed the door open and observed the blood spatter as Mac answered his ringing cell phone.

"That was the ME's office. They can't send anyone for almost two hours."

"Rigor's just starting to set in, by the time they get here they won't be able to move him without some trouble," Stella said.

Mac raised an eyebrow and made his way into the room past Stella. His eyebrows raised even higher when he saw the body.

"I know we've seen a lot of things Stella, but this is new…"

The body on the bed was face down, tied spread eagled to the corners. There was a grid carved in every inch of visible skin, with small knives at the corner of each square.

"This would have taken hours of slow methodical work," Stella observed as she snapped pictures of the room.

"Arterial splatter indicates this started face up, probably with the victim's throat cut."

"That would mean these wounds are all post-mortum. If not torture then what was the point?"

"I don't know, but I'm gonna check out the bathroom. Finish photographing in here and then start taking samples. I'll call the ME's and tell them to bring the big van."

Stella nodded and smirked. The only thing more fun than teasing Mac was watching ME's struggle with a body in full rigor.

Half an hour of processing passed and Mac had moved out into the hallway to look for footprints and the sky outside had grown dark. The wind was howling and there was snow flying outside the window. Then without warning the lights flickered and went out.

"Mac?" Stella called. She groped for her flashlight and switched it on.

"OW! Damnit."

"Mac are you ok?"

"Fine Stella, just tripped over my own evidence kit."

Stella suppressed a giggle as she stripped her gloves and made her way out into the hallway. She saw Mac sprawled outside the next room, apparently in no hurry to get up.

"Sure you're ok?" she asked as she crouched next to him.

"Yeah, peachy. What happened?" he asked as he rolled over and stared up at her and the ceiling, not really focusing on either one.

"Powers down. I don't know if it's the building or the whole city but the storm's getting pretty bad out there."

Stella reached for her cell phone and flicked it open, revealing a flashing no service message.

"Let me guess, the cell towers are down too," Mac mumbled as he sat up.

"Looks that way. You think we can still get out?"

"I don't know. Lets find out."

With a little help Mac was back on his feet and they headed down the stairs of the hotel to the back entrance where Stella's Avalanche was parked. He pulled open the door and found a snow drift up to his waist. Looking out over it he saw the truck was already buried up to the grill in snow. There was no way they were getting out until they could dig the truck out.

With a sigh Mac closed the door and turned to find Stella had been hovering behind him.

"No way out?" she asked.

"You can look for yourself. Snow's already almost up to my chest and there's no way we're getting the truck out without shovels and chains and besides, who knows what the roads are like." Mac checked his watch. "It's almost eleven, no one's going to get us out tonight…we might as well hole up in the rooms upstairs."

Stella nodded, none too happy about being stuck in a shut down hotel with no water, no electricity and no heat, for as long as it took for the storm to stop blanketing New York City in snow and the work crew to get their area of town unburied.

"I'll check the kitchen for any food. You got a flashlight?"

"Yeah." Mac held up his mini LED light. "Meet me up on the ninth floor. That should give us the advantage of any heat in here rising."

Stella nodded and went to find the kitchen. A few cans of soup were still in the closet and she took them with her. She also found a small portable cooker tucked away in a pantry, and she grabbed a sauce pan and some spoons on her way out, throwing it all into a bag with some bottles of water.

Climbing nine flights of stairs wasn't the most fun she'd ever had but Mac met her at the seventh floor and helped her carry the supplies.

"This is so stupid, there's no way we can even do anything without light," she grumbled as she dumped all the stuff on the floor upstairs.

"I know, I can't even tell the difference between carpet fiber and hair with just a flashlight."

"Need glasses Mac?" Stella teased.

"I'm not that old Stella."

Stella grinned. She loved to mess with her boss, he was just too much fun to joke at. They sat on the floor and heated the soup, each stealing spoonfuls here and there from the other's can. They talked about nothing and joked, forgetting the case that had brought them there in the first place.

"This is so nice," Stella commented. "When was the last time we sat down at relaxed while we ate?"

"You mean us together or separately?" Mac asked with a sideway grin.

"Either," Stella shrugged, trying to think of any time in recent memory when she had felt so at ease.

"I have no idea," Mac said a few minutes later.

"Yeah…"

They both started laughing together and didn't stop for several minutes.

"They're gonna be worried you know." Stella checked her phone again but there was still no service.

"We'll be fine, and I think they can survive a few hours of worry," Mac yawned.

"Ok Mac, we've established that you never relax, when was the last time you slept?" Stella asked with a raised eyebrow. "And I want the truth."

Mac winced and thought about it. If he was truthful about it, it had been almost 72 hours, and he told her as much.

"That's it Taylor, in bed now," Stella ordered.

Mac raised an eyebrow and grinned. "Well well, didn't know you were so eager Stell."

Stella glared at him, trying to hold back her laughter. "Now's not the time for flirting Mac. I'm serious, you need sleep."

"Maybe it's the exact time for flirting," Mac said as he wiggled his eyebrows.

It was at this point Stella vowed she would never understand men. "You are impossible," she muttered.

"I'm kidding Stella, I'm just in a good mood that's all."

Stella raised an eyebrow and stared at him. "Something I rarely see and you'd never admit. Just what was in the soup I brought up here?"

Mac shrugged and stood up. "Well you can share the double room with me, or there's a queen suite a couple doors down." He yawned and climbed into one of the beds with a sigh.

Stella rolled her eyes and left the room to scout out more covers. When she came back with her arms full of blankets, Mac was sound asleep. With a soft smile she threw a few more of the thin blankets over him to ward off the chill that was creeping into the room and then snuggled herself under the others on her own bed after she removed her shoes. She was asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow. Neither one of them would ever admit just how exhausted doing their job made them.

When Stella woke up a few hours later she was shivering and her teeth were chattering. She got up, taking her covers with her and peeked out the window. The snow was pilled halfway up the window, and already a good six to seven feet on the streets below.

"You ok Stell?" Mac called groggily.

"The snow's deeper," she chattered. "It's higher than Flack is tall."

A few seconds later she felt another blanket drape around her shoulders and turned around to see Mac standing there.

"Won't you get cold?" she asked.

Mac sighed. "This should be in no way hard to say, we're both rational adults, but I'm having some trouble…"

"What Mac, before I freeze to death," Stella grumbled.

"That's kinda my point…I think we should share one bed…for warmth. It's already down to six degrees outside and it's dropping fast."

"I'm not complaining," Stella muttered as she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Mac, still shivering.

Mac smiled softly and held Stella close for a few seconds before pulling her towards the bed. Together they snuggled down under eight of the thin hotel blankets wrapped in each others arms.

"I'm never taking central heating for granted again," Stella chattered.

Mac laughed as he enjoyed the simple feeling of just getting to hold her. "I wouldn't even mind an old fashioned fireplace right about now. Stella you're hands are frozen."

He took her hands in his, blowing on them gently and rubbing them to bring back the warmth.

"Thanks." Stella's teeth had finally stopped chattering and she wasn't shivering as badly.

"You know I could make some inappropriate joke right now…"

Stella laughed. "I think we both could do plenty of that Mac. You do seem pretty eager to get me into bed tonight."

Mac flushed and laughed heartily. Something around his heart was stinging a little and he realized that he was more than just a little happy. All the years of pain were finally ebbing away while he lay here with Stella, Stella in his arms.

"You didn't seem to opposed to the idea," he whispered into her hair causing her to laugh again. They were both doing a lot of laughing in the last few hours.

Stella shrugged. "What can I say Mac, you've always been ruggedly handsome and charming. How could I resist?" She smiled as she wriggled her eyes brows at him. Her smile wavered a little as his hand came up to rest against her cheek and she involuntarily leaned into the touch just a little.

"How long have we known each other Stell?"

"A long time Mac." Stella breath hitched as his thumb brushed over her cheek.

"Then how come I've never been able to tell you how stunningly beautiful you are?"

"Because you've had things to deal with in your past," Stella said simply. "It's no small thing when the person you love is taken from you."

"You were there for me…you were always there for me Stella. Thank you. You helped me defeat my demons, in more ways than one."

Stella smiled and snuggled her head under Mac's chin, holding him close. "Anytime Mac," she mumbled sleepily.

Mac kissed her hair and let his head lean against hers, each breath inhaling the smell of her lavender shampoo.

"I love you Stell," he whispered when he was sure she was asleep. She mumbled into his chest but didn't wake, and Mac smiled, drifting off to sleep.

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**Not the end I promise. There's still a case to solve! ;)**


	2. Snowed In

_**Sorry in advance for the shorter chapter. **_

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When Stella woke again and checked her watch through her bleary eyes it was almost ten am and she was alone. Yawning and stretching she slid out of bed and back into her shoes, taking a couple of the blankets with her.

Down the hall the sound of clinking was floating out of an open door and she went to investigate.

"Mac?" she called as she pushed the door open the rest of the way.

"Morning."

Stella found herself now standing the suite that Mac had mentioned. It was huge, with two rooms and a small kitchen. Mac was cooking on the camper cooker from her truck, which was much better than the one she found the night before and he was bundled up in his thick winter jacket.

"Can we get out?" she asked eagerly, seeing her own coat on the couch. She quickly traded the thin blankets for the down jacket.

"No, but I dug out one side of the truck and got us some more supplies. I got the cooker, the jackets, the box you put in there labeled 'Blizzard' and some space blankets."

Stella grinned. "You find more food too?"

"Freezer. Bacon and toast coming up."

"How long do you think before they can come dig us out? We've still got a body downstairs and a murder to solve."

Mac shook his head as he ate his food, comfortably curled up on the couch next to Stella, a space blanket spread over both of them.

"I have no idea, but it could be a while. Did you ever find an ID for the body?"

"No obvious signs of a wallet, but it could have gotten kicked under the bed. I didn't have a chance to look before the lights went out last night."

They finished eating in silence and Stella put aside her plate, reaching for the blizzard kit she'd put in her truck after the first storm of the year had dumped six inches on the city. Now she was glad she'd thought ahead.

"What did you put in there?" Mac asked.

Stella smirked and started unpacking it, giving him the items to lay out on the coffee table. She handed him toothbrushes, deodorant, wool gloves, socks, and hats, another folded space blanket, several air contact hand warmers, a police radio, two flashlights with extra batteries and tucked in the very bottom, a high powered battery operated heater.

"You amaze me Stell, how do you think of everything?" Mac asked in as he set up the heater in front of them like a fireplace. Stella tried the radio but all she got was static and feedback.

"I don't Mac, I wish I did," she laughed. Her expression sobered as she watched him. It only took him a couple minutes to set up the heater and get tucked back under the space blanket with her.

"Is it still snowing?" she asked as he draped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. She was shivering again, and if Mac was asked he would readily admit he was pretty damned cold too.

"Not as hard, but yeah it's still snowing some," he answered.

"I'm still tired," Stella muttered as she yawned.

"Go back to sleep then."

"Ok. Hey Mac?" she asked sleepily as she snuggled down in his arms again, warming up from the heat seeping through her clothes from both his body and the heater.

"Yeah Stell?"

"I love you too." It was hardly more than a whisper but Mac heard and couldn't help but break out in a wide grin.

-:-:-

Six hours and several improvised games of poker later, (Stella found a deck in her coat pocket,) the rest of the team showed up with a gang of shovels and snow plows to dig them out.

"You guys ok?" Danny asked.

"Fine," Mac responded as he stowed his kit in the back of Stella's Avalanche, now dug free from the snow drift.

"Did you make it home last night Danny?" Stella asked with a smirk. She slid into the drivers seat and turned the key to the ignition. The car rumbled but didn't start.

"Nope, got snowed in at Montana's place." Danny's eyes were twinkling.

Stella raised an eyebrow as the Avalanche roared to life. "Have some fun?"

"Oh, most defiantly. See you back at the lab." Danny closed the door for her and hurried away to his own car.

Stella turned to Mac and smirked. He was grinning at Danny's retreating back

"Did he just?"

Mac's grin widened. "I think they're finally together."

"If they are, Flack owes me twenty bucks," Stella grinned.

The ride back to the lab behind the ME's van was interesting to say the least. The snow was still piled in drifts around them and they couldn't go faster than a crawl and the van was swerving everywhere with it's lack of four wheel drive.

"I sure hope the power at the lab is on, I could use some coffee," Mac commented. He yawned.

"I could use a shower," Stella muttered.

* * *

When Stella woke again and checked her watch through her bleary eyes it was almost ten am and she was alone. Yawning and stretching she slid out of bed and back into her shoes, taking a couple of the blankets with her.

Down the hall the sound of clinking was floating out of an open door and she went to investigate.

"Mac?" she called as she pushed the door open the rest of the way.

"Morning."

Stella found herself now standing the suite that Mac had mentioned. It was huge, with two rooms and a small kitchen. Mac was cooking on the camper cooker from her truck, which was much better than the one she found the night before and he was bundled up in his thick winter jacket.

"Can we get out?" she asked eagerly, seeing her own coat on the couch. She quickly traded the thin blankets for the down jacket.

"No, but I dug out one side of the truck and got us some more supplies. I got the cooker, the jackets, the box you put in there labeled 'Blizzard' and some space blankets."

Stella grinned. "You find more food too?"

"Freezer. Bacon and toast coming up."

"How long do you think before they can come dig us out? We've still got a body downstairs and a murder to solve."

Mac shook his head as he ate his food, comfortably curled up on the couch next to Stella, a space blanket spread over both of them.

"I have no idea, but it could be a while. Did you ever find an ID for the body?"

"No obvious signs of a wallet, but it could have gotten kicked under the bed. I didn't have a chance to look before the lights went out last night."

They finished eating in silence and Stella put aside her plate, reaching for the blizzard kit she'd put in her truck after the first storm of the year had dumped six inches on the city. Now she was glad she'd thought ahead.

"What did you put in there?" Mac asked.

Stella smirked and started unpacking it, giving him the items to lay out on the coffee table. She handed him toothbrushes, deodorant, wool gloves, socks, and hats, another folded space blanket, several air contact hand warmers, a police radio, two flashlights with extra batteries and tucked in the very bottom, a high powered battery operated heater.

"You amaze me Stell, how do you think of everything?" Mac asked in as he set up the heater in front of them like a fireplace. Stella tried the radio but all she got was static and feedback.

"I don't Mac, I wish I did," she laughed. Her expression sobered as she watched him. It only took him a couple minutes to set up the heater and get tucked back under the space blanket with her.

"Is it still snowing?" she asked as he draped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. She was shivering again, and if Mac was asked he would readily admit he was pretty damned cold too.

"Not as hard, but yeah it's still snowing some," he answered.

"I'm still tired," Stella muttered as she yawned.

"Go back to sleep then."

"Ok. Hey Mac?" she asked sleepily as she snuggled down in his arms again, warming up from the heat seeping through her clothes from both his body and the heater.

"Yeah Stell?"

"I love you too." It was hardly more than a whisper but Mac heard and couldn't help but break out in a wide grin.

-:-:-

Six hours and several improvised games of poker later, (Stella found a deck in her coat pocket,) the rest of the team showed up with a gang of shovels and snow plows to dig them out.

"You guys ok?" Danny asked.

"Fine," Mac responded as he stowed his kit in the back of Stella's Avalanche, now dug free from the snow drift.

"Did you make it home last night Danny?" Stella asked with a smirk. She slid into the drivers seat and turned the key to the ignition. The car rumbled but didn't start.

"Nope, got snowed in at Montana's place." Danny's eyes were twinkling.

Stella raised an eyebrow as the Avalanche roared to life. "Have some fun?"

"Oh, most defiantly. See you back at the lab." Danny closed the door for her and hurried away to his own car.

Stella turned to Mac and smirked. He was grinning at Danny's retreating back

"Did he just?"

Mac's grin widened. "I think they're finally together."

"If they are, Flack owes me twenty bucks," Stella grinned.

The ride back to the lab behind the ME's van was interesting to say the least. The snow was still piled in drifts around them and they couldn't go faster than a crawl and the van was swerving everywhere with it's lack of four wheel drive.

"I sure hope the power at the lab is on, I could use some coffee," Mac commented. He yawned.

"I could use a shower," Stella muttered.

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**Please Review!**


	3. Another Murder

_**Alright a bit longer here. Hope you enjoy!  
**_

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An hour after they got back to the lab, which was thankfully lit and warm, Stella made her way through the hall in clean clothes with a cup of coffee and the evidence bag with the small knives in her hands.

"Hey."

"Hey," she said as she fell in step with Mac.

"Sid just called up to my office, he said he hasn't gotten to the body yet but if we come down he's just about to start. Have a good shower?"

"Very. Cell towers still out?" Stella grinned. Was Mac flirting with her now?

"I called Flack, he said they're trying to unbury the generators now. The whole city's shut down, except for the major departments."

They were just walking in the doors as Sid unzipped the body bag.

"What did they do to this guy?" he asked as soon as he saw the body.

"He was stuck full of these too," Stella said. She held up the bag full of knives.

"I've seen a lot of things, but this is new…"

"That's what I said," Mac muttered.

"It looks like COD is exsanguination, but I'll let you know for sure."

"I'm going to go start processing these," Stella said, indicating the knives.

"Where is everyone?" Mac asked Sid.

"Snowed in mostly…I never left last night. Only reason I'm here." The ME shrugged at Mac's frown. "I was stuck here, you were stuck in an abandoned hotel. With Stella."

"What's Stella got to do with this?" Mac complained at Sid's tone and expression.

"Oh, nothing," he said innocently. "Help me lift him will you?"

Still frowning Mac grabbed a coat and gloves and helped their nosey ME process the body.

"You better not be implying that anything happened last night."

Sid raised an eyebrow and smirked. He combed through the vic's hair collecting bits of evidence.

"Did it?"

"No, of course not." Mac was stuttering.

"Sure it didn't."

There was silence for a while before Mac sighed and spoke again.

"I told her I loved her."

Sid grinned, happy that he had his back to his boss. "And then?"

"Nothing. She was asleep…in my arms." Mac clearly neglected to mention that she had head him and responded later.

Now Sid was really laughing and Mac just glared at him across the autopsy table.

"It was cold," he defended himself. "We were just sharing a bed to stay warm."

"And your clothes stayed on?"

"Of course they did!" Mac started to pace around the morgue, occasionally hitting the metal doors of the cooler as he passed.

He loved Stella, he just didn't have the guts to tell her before, and even now it seemed like cheating when they were both half asleep and frozen. He needed to take her out to dinner. The only problem with that was the city was buried. He could always cook…

"Well," said Sid, breaking his train of thought. "Sounds to me like there might be a winner of the pool soon."

Mac stopped in his tracks and whirled on the ME. "What pool?"

"The one on you and Stella. I'm told it's considerably bigger than the one on Messer and Monroe. Not that I bet on it." Sid crossed his arms and stared Mac down, as if daring him to say something.

"I miss the time when no one would talk to me because they were all scared," Mac muttered. Sid's laugh followed him out of the room as he stalked away with the evidence bags in hand. Sheldon Hawkes quickly dodged out of the way of the irate CSI as he passed to enter the morgue.

"What's gotten into him?" Hawkes asked as he moved over to the body. He raised an eyebrow. "I'll ask about him later."

"Well, I think things between Mac and Stella are finally, heating up shall we say," Sid smirked.

Hawkes grinned and thought 'About damned time.'

-Upstairs: A few hours later-

"We've got an ID on our Vic," Danny said proudly as he tossed the folder on Stella's desk. "One James Mason, cousin of the head chef of the Chateau restaurant in your abandoned hotel. And you know what Nathan Mason's specialty was? Sushi. Very fancy and very unique."

Stella flipped open the folder and saw a picture of the chef's signature dish and her eyebrow raised. "This is the same pattern as the vic."

"Exactly. Looks like we found our killer. Must be our lucky day."

"That would sure be nice, I want to go home before my apartment is a complete freezer from all this snow. I'll go tell Mac, you take Don and go pick this guy up, if you can get to him."

Danny nodded. "It's been a few hours since the crews got out, they should have the area where he lives out by now."

"Sounds good." Stella clapped Danny on the shoulder on her way out of the office. She headed towards Mac's office but Lindsey flagged her down halfway there.

"Those fingerprints on the knives, they belong to a Nathan Mason, prior for aggravated assault with a knife."

"That's the guy Danny and Flack are going to pick up now. He was head chef at the restaurant in the hotel and his signature dish was Sushi."

Stella showed Lindsey the picture.

"Wow…and the cuts on the vic looked just like this?"

Stella nodded. "Was there anything else useful at the crime scene?"

Lindsey shook her head. "There were fingerprints from our vic on the knives too and a hair that Mac found in the bathroom, but it didn't have a skin tag, so no DNA. No other prints or fibers that Danny found."

Stella frowned. "Well at this point the fingerprints could be a coincidence, but the pattern indicated someone with extensive knowledge of this dish. What's the motive though?"

At that moment Stella's phone rang and she jumped. "Looks like the cell towers are up again," Lindsey commented.

"Bonasera," Stella answered.

"Hey, Stella you guys might want to get out here. "We've got another DOA," Flack's voice floated through the phone, even though it was crackly.

"Nathan Mason?" Stella looked at Lindsey in confusion.

"His sister, Claira. Two gunshots to the chest."

Stella closed her phone and looked at Lindsey, confusion written all over her face.

"They just found Nathan's sister dead at his apartment."

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Review please?


	4. You Promised to Stay

_**I realized I was getting too far into the case and too far from the Mac/Stella goodness, so here's a treat for all of you wonderful readers! Shameless fluff!  
**_

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"So first we find James murdered and meticulously cut up at the hotel where his cousin Nathan worked as the head chef. Nathan's fingerprints are all over the knives, and the cuts match the pattern he carved into his signature dish. Then we find Nathan's sister shot twice in the chest, and dead longer than James. What are we missing?"

Stella sighed and leaned back in her office chair.

"I dunno," Flack moaned, "But we've been over all of this a million times and twelve hours later we still got nothing, and I'm beat."

"And there's no luck tracking down Nathan?"

"Not a sign. Only other potential lead is Claira's ex-boyfriend, a mook by the name of Chandler Rosenberg. Couple of priors, nothing too suspicious. Gun possession and a couple of assault charges. Everything was dropped though."

"Any connection to vic number one?"

"As a matter of fact, there is." Lindsey strode into Stella's office and handed her a paper. "Chandler used to work at the hotel restaurant with James and Nathan. He was an under chef, means he would have known all about the sushi."

"So what are you thinking, he killed James and framed Nathan? So who killed the sister and why haven't we found Nathan?"

"I dunno about you ladies, but I'm gonna call it a night. I'll look for the dirt bag in the morning," Flack yawned.

"Night," the other two chorused as he left the room.

After saying good night to Lindsey and locking her office Stella headed out to the car park. She reached her car and tossed her bag in before leaning against the back door and yawning widely.

"You ok to drive Stel?"

Stella jumped and then smiled. "Yeah Mac, I'm fine." She yawned again.

'C'mon, I'll drive you home," Mac grinned.

Stella did her best to protest as Mac gently guided her to the passenger side of her truck, but gave up when she couldn't stop yawning.

"Am I going to have to make you take vacation time to get caught up on your sleep?" Mac teased.

"Why make me take time off when you never sleep at all, Mac?" Stella mumbled. Her head was leaning back against the seat and her eyes were closed. She was already drifting off to sleep.

"Frankly because there's only one thing that's going to change my sleeping pattern. You just need to work less."

"Mm, and what's that Mac? What's gonna make you actually act like a human and enter the world of dreams?"

Mac smiled softly but didn't answer her. By the time he pulled up at her building she was snoring softly. He grabbed her bag from the back and fished her keys out, tossing the bag over his shoulder.

It was still freezing cold out, but most of the snow had been cleared from the streets, leaving a wonderfully slick layer of ice. Mac eyed it, debating weather or not to wake Stella up.

He decided against his and gently lifted her from the car, kicking the door shut and clicking the lock. Stella snuggled closer to him, mumbling in her sleep and he had to smile.

"Stella, you might want to wake up long enough to get changed. Sleeping in your clothes isn't that fun," Mac told her as he opened her apartment door and stepped inside.

"Do I have to?"

"You should."

"Fine." Stella grumbled as Mac let her down and she staggered into her bedroom. Two minutes later she was back, dressed in comfortable sweats and wrapped in a blanket.

Mac had already turned her furnace all the way up and was working on lighting a fire in the grill in her living room when she sat down heavily on the couch.

"Gonna stay and keep me warm Mac?" Stella groaned inside her head. Why had she just said that. She really needed some coffee. Or some sleep. Either one sounded good to her.

"I dunno Stella, what about your 'No men in my apartment' rule?" Mac smirked as he prodded at the fire.

Stella yawned again. "I'll ignore it this one time if you come curl up on this couch with me and keep me warm. I'm frozen."

"In that case, you got any sweats in my size?"

"Bottom drawer," Stella yawned. She curled her arms up on the arm of the couch and laid her head down.

She mumbled and snuggled right into Mac's arms as he sat down beside her a few minutes later, covering them both with another blanket.

"How cold is it?" she asked quietly.

"Outside about ten degrees I would guess, maybe lower. Probably about forty in here."

The fire crackled loudly in the grate and Stella sighed as the heat from it washed over her.

"Hey Mac, what was that one thing that can make you sleep? Without the nightmares I mean."

Mac laughed. "It's a secret."

She prodded him in the side.

"Stell, will you go to sleep already?"

"Only if you promise to tell me."

Mac sighed and lay back on the couch, pulling Stella on top of him and tucking the blankets in around them.

"Alright Stell, I'll tell you," he whispered as he kissed her hair. "You, right here in my arms. I sleep the best I've slept in years."

Stella smiled and snuggled closer to Mac, breathing in his warm scent and letting herself relax and enjoy the feel of his protective arms around her she fell into a deep and restful sleep at last.

Sometime later in the night after the fire died down Mac tucked her into her bed under her heavy covers and prepared to go back to the couch but Stella's hand gripped his and wouldn't let go.

"You promised to stay," she muttered.

"Stell?"

"Stop being so stubborn Mac, just get in the damned bed and go to sleep."

A smile forced it's way on Mac's face as he shook his head at her stubbornness and climbed in with her. She immediately smuggled into his chest and was fast asleep again in seconds. It didn't take him much longer considering how exhausted he was.

Sid had been right. Someone was going to win that pool. But that was something to be dealt with in the morning.

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Review please? :3


	5. Winners

_**Alrighty this is mostly dialogue. I intend to wrap up the case in the next chapter and leave way for a bit more fluff before the story is completely over.**_

_**To lilgreenbean: Here you go ;)  
**_

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"I didn't kill James! I've told you that twenty times!"

"Why don't you tell us one more. Your sister is dead with two bullet holes in her chest and your cousin was found in the hotel where you used to work, sliced up to look like a piece of sushi."

The glare Flack was leveling at Nathan Mason across the table was enough to make any man flinch, but Nathan didn't blink.

"Sashimi, how many times do I have to say it, Sushi is rolled! And James wasn't our cousin…he was our brother." Nathan folded his hands and rested his head on them as he spoke quietly. "My mom's sister couldn't have kids and when my mom got pregnant with James she was going to get an abortion. My aunt convinced her to keep the baby and she adopted him the day he was born. Neither of them ever got married so we all have the same last name."

"That still doesn't explain how they're both dead, or where you were."

Nathan sighed. "I told you, I don't have an alibi, but I will tell you this. Claira's boyfriend was a nasty piece of work. I never wanted her going out with that scum to begin with. He worked at the restaurant too, as a dishwasher. And not a very good one either. If you want to look for someone that would kill either one of them, look for him. He's been in and out of jail since he was a kid."

-:-:-

"So we're back to Chandler Rosenberg. He's been arrested seventeen times since he was fourteen, mostly for destruction of property with a few for assault and menacing. You think this is our guy?"

Stella glanced across her desk at Flack who was yawning.

"Didn't you go home last night?"

"Nope, got a call the minute I walked out the door. Some robbery involving a citizens arrest. But I bet you went home." Flack grinned and wriggled his eyebrows.

"What's that expression supposed to mean?" Stella glared just a little at her friend.

"Well I saw Mac when you guys were coming in. He went straight for the lockers, to change out of the same suit he was wearing yesterday. And he was standing pretty close to you too."

Stella blushed and turned her glare up full blast. "Stop changing the subject. Get back to the case."

Flack shrugged. "Mason hasn't got an alibi for either murder and this Rosenberg creep looks like the type to do it."

Stella's phone rang and she picked it up while Flack leaned back and closed his eyes.

"Bonasera. Yeah…thanks Sid."

Stella turned back to Flack who was snoring softly. A little too softly.

"Don, quit it. Sid just said that the power outage knocked out the power at the apartment and the cold preserved Claira Mason's body to the point where the only obvious wounds were the gunshots."

Flack quirked an eye open and peered at Stella.

"She was beaten, multiple broken bones, bruising on almost all of her body, and damage to her internal organs. The shots that killed her must have been a blessing."

"I'm likin' this Rosenberg guy more and more. There an address in that file?"

"Yeah but you're not going, you're going home. I'll send Danny and Lindsey," Stella frowned.

"I'm fine Stell, I don't need to go home," Flack started to protest.

"She's right you know, you need some rest. Don't worry, we'll let the guy stew until you get back." Mac was just inside the door, another folder in his hand. It briefly crossed Stella's mind that somewhere there was a warehouse the size of Mars, completely filled with police reports no one would ever read again.

"Ugh, why are you love birds ganging up on me?" Flack groaned.

Mac and Stella both raised their eyebrows and looked at each other. Mac leaned against the door frame and crossed his arms.

"Love birds huh. I don't know about this, that sound right to you Stella?"

Stella grinned at the same time she blushed at the look Mac was giving her. The would 'smoldering' came to mind.

"Yeah that sounds about right Mac," she nodded.

"I only ask one thing…well two. One is, I don't ever, ever want to know anything about anything Stella, you gotta swear, no details. Tell it to Lindsey."

Stella just laughed an nodded while Mac grinned. "And the second?" she asked.

"When exactly did this happen?"

"Hmm, last night?" Stella said questioningly.

"The night of the storm?" Mac said.

"Could call it both," Stella grinned.

"Oh, good," Flack groaned. He dug out a notebook from the pocket of his leather jacket and flipped through it.

"Well look at that. We have a winner. Two in fact."

"Don, how long has this pool been going?" Stella asked.

Flack new better than to look up because he knew the look he would be on the receiving end of.

"Uh it's what, 2010?" He flipped back several pages. "First bet was placed December of 2004."

The shock was apparent on the other two peoples faces.

"You guys have been betting on us for six years?" Mac asked. "I..what about when I was dating Payton?"

Stella's face darkened considerably at the name and Mac flinched.

"And when she was dating the psycho!" he included.

"Well the longest anyone thought Payton would last was about three weeks. Bets were cancelled when the psycho turned out to be a psycho, on account of him being a psycho."

"We get it, he was nuts. Who won?" Stella asked, trying to steer away from the uncomfortable ex-topic.

"Sid for two days ago, oh hey look. I won for yesterday. That's a share of a $12,000 pot for me." Flack grinned and hightailed it out of the room, holding his notebook for dear life.

"Did you know about this?" Stella asked.

"I wish I had, I'd have bet on it. That's a lot of money."

"Mac!"

Mac grinned again and crossed the room to sit on the edge of her desk.

"What? I already admitted I loved you, I might as well admit that I've wanted to tell you for years."

Stella's eyes were tearing up as she smiled. "I almost wish you'd said it sooner…but if I think about it, I think everything is just the way is should be."

"Good. Dinner at my place tonight?"

"Sure."

For a few moments they were simply lost in each others eyes, at ease now that they didn't have to hold back their true feelings anymore. Finally Mac sighed and handed her the file.

"One of the other CSI's found this at the hotel crime scene. Thought it might interest you."

"An eyelash?" Stella scanned the file. "Can you get DNA off of these?"

"Yeah Danny's running it now. It was stuck to one of the knives in the vics leg and someone noticed it and bagged it."

"I wonder if it's the killers…"

"Danny said it'd only take about ten minutes to finish scanning the database."

Stella smiled. "Have a seat then, we can take a snack break."

Mac raised a questioning eyebrow but obeyed, sitting in the dead that Flack had vacated. Stella pulled chips and crackers out of on of her desk drawers along with a deck of cards.

Fifteen minutes later found them good-naturedly arguing over the cards and laughing so hard that Stella's sides were starting to cramp. She'd just started throwing bits of cracker at Mac when Danny came in.

"Am I interrupting?"

"Just a little," Mac said. "Get a hit?"

"Yeah, one Chandler Rosenberg, laundry list of priors."

"That's our suspect…Claria Mason's boyfriend," Stella said with satisfaction.

"Let's go pick him up," Mac said as he stood. "It's time we catch this guy."

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**Review please? :3**


	6. We Call This Love

_**Last Chapter! I hope you enjoy!**_

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"Just admit it. You killed Claira and James and framed Nathan for it."

"What proof have ya got?" Rosenberg drawled.

"This guy is a total scumbag," Stella muttered. She and Mac were watching from the other side of the interrogation room window as Flack ripped the guy to shreds.

"Well the evidence has him placed at both scenes and Nathan's alibi came through. We found the gun in his car and he has a long criminal history. The prosecutor's gonna nail him to the floor."

"Good."

"Ready for some food?"

Stella smiled and nodded. She hadn't eaten since a muffin with her coffee that morning and she was starving. "What are you making?"

"You'll just have to wait and see, won't you. Come on, I'll drive."

A few minutes later Mac and Stella entered the elevator to the parking area together. They were both bundled up in their winter coats and Stella was tucked under Mac's arm and she had hers around his waist.

She glanced up at Mac as the elevator started to move and had the impulse to lean up and kiss him on the cheek. So she did.

Mac smiled down at her as she grinned like a little girl. Her grin faded a little when she saw his eyes start to smolder. She gasped when he leaned down and kissed her.

Her lips burned where their mouths were fused and her stomach fluttered. Her free arm reached up to wrap around Mac's neck as she pulled herself closer to him. His arms tightened around her as he deepened the kiss before he pulled back. They were both gasping a little from the intensity.

"Wow," Mac breathed.

Stella blushed. Mac kissed her forehead and led her the rest of the way to the car, holding the door open for her with and exaggerated flourish, making her laugh.

The ride to Mac's apartment was silent but comfortable. A few blocks away from the lab Stella reached over and twined her fingers with Mac's, squeezing his hand gently.

When they got out of the car Stella walked right up to Mac and kissed him passionately, pressing her body as close to his as their cloths and coats would allow. He wrapped his arms around her and pushed her up against the side of the car, returning her kiss with equal ferocity.

"Stella what are you doing?" he asked as they stumbled towards the door.

"I think dinner can wait, Mac," she breathed with a smirk. Their clothes were soon littering the apartment.

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When Stella woke up next morning it was to Mac prodding her gently with something pointy. She cracked and eyes open and saw the corner of a tray poking her shoulder.

"Good morning," he grinned. "I thought since we missed dinner, we could have breakfast in bed."

Stella smiled and yawned, sitting up and pulling the covers around herself. Mac looked so happy sitting there on the bed in only a pair of sweat pants, (The ones she let him borrow a few days before, she absently noted) that Stella couldn't resist leaning over and kissing him thoroughly before digging into the omelet that he made for her.

They talked about everything and nothing as they ate, happy just to be in each others company with no walls, no pretenses, and no rules to hold them back.

Eventually Stella grabbed Mac's shirt from the floor next to the bed and put it on as she slid out of bed, smirking at the expression on his face.

"What?"

"Never thought I'd say this, but I never want you to put your own clothes on again. My shirt looks too good on you."

Stella laughed loudly as she made her way to the bathroom. She grinned at her own appearance and detangled her hair with her fingers and removed the remainder of her makeup. When she was done she went back into the bedroom to find Mac gone.

Stella glanced around the living room as she entered it, seeing the scattered clothes and noticed that most pieces missed the floor, instead adorning lamps, tables, chairs, even the TV and ceiling fan, which her bra was hanging off of.

"Nice aim Mac," she grinned. He looked in from the kitchen and blushed when he saw what she was indicating.

He quickly grabbed it off the fan and handed it to her. "Not bad yourself. One of my socks is on top of my dresser."

Stella blinked. "The tall one in your room, that you keep your suits in?"

"Yup."

They couldn't stop laughing after that as they collected their clothes from the various strange places they landed.

"So what are we telling people?" Stella asked as she sipped a cup of coffee a while later.

Mac shrugged. "Does it matter too much?"

"I guess not. Just wondering."

"Well would tell them the truth, that we're together and happy about it," he grinned.

Stella nodded. She stood up and walked over to Mac, right into his open arms. She held him close and listened to his heartbeat.

"Weird huh…."

"What is?"

Stella smiled. "The fact that this happened over a dead body."

Mac snorted. "What the hell else would it happen over in our line of work?"

"You have a point there," Stella laughed.

"You know I really think I do," he joked. They stood there for a few minutes before Stella shifted a little so she could see his face, as a serious question crossed her mind. What were they? What would they be in the future? What would happen to them?

"What do we call this Mac?" she asked as she looked up into his eyes.

Mac smiled, knowing what she was thinking. The same thoughts and questions had already crossed his mind and they would find out the answers together, one step at a time.

"We call this love."

The End

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**Well, this is the end of The Dead of Winter. I hope you enjoyed and I hope you'll stick around for my other stories!**

**Note: I realize I spelled Claira weird, as it's pronounced more like 'Clara' but yeah...I dunno I was throwing around for a name and landed there. And if there isn't enough detail, her boyfriend just went into a crazed rage and shot her. James saw this and ran so Rosenberg followed him and caught up to him at the hotel, where he killed him and framed Nathan. Too smart for a punk like that? Eh, whatevers. XD**

**BIGGER NOTE: OMG I totally screwed up the names! I'm so glad I caught it before too many people had read it and I fixed all the errors!  
**

**Thank you all for reading!  
**

**Please review one last time!**


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